Broken Roses
by DoeEyedLady
Summary: Roses are always pretty. Even when they are broken. Roses are roses after all, no matter what they look like. You can even heal a rose if it's been damaged. All what you have to do is remove the parts of the rose that are decomposing, and give it nourishment and of course love. The Rose however, can't do this for herself. Someone else has to do it for her... Sharrkan & Yamuraiha
1. An Invitation

She turned two cone shaped shells over in her hands as she examined them carefully at her desk in front of a large bay window overlooking her beloved city of Sindria. She couldn't help but admire her own handiwork, they were so beautiful as they shined and glistened gold in the waning hours of sindrian sunlight. As beautiful as they were, she made them for a powerful purpose. They were magical tools that she had invented to collect magoi from being in close contact to her own body and when broken, created a defensive shield that could deflect any attack. They were stunning yet dangerous, and these magical tools were her most prized possessions.

She blew out a large heavy sigh. They had proved themselves to be very useful, but now she had rendered these artifacts useless. This saddened her greatly beyond compare. These shells carried her very essence of her soul within them. They had become a part of her, but now there was no reason to wear them at all now. They were just pretty little trinkets now. She rubbed her thumb against the hard surface and felt all the bumps and curves the shells made as they spiraled to a point. Oh how she wished she could wear these again!

"Should you really be playing with those things, Yamuraiha?"

Yamuraiha nearly dropped the shells she was holding. Realizing that they were quite fragile now without any magic, she set them down gently before fixing the person with an icy blue glare.

"These _things _are Magical tools that I created, and they are very important to me. Do you even know that these saved your life? It's because they store magoi taken from my body and when broken-"

"And that is why I think you shouldn't touch them," Sharrkan interrupted. No point in explaining anything magic related to him.

Yamuraiha blinked in confusion.

"What?"

"Those things take magoi from you right? Won't that just kill-" He looked away from her, looking somewhat embarrassed. "I mean won't that just make your condition worse?" He sat in an extra chair that was placed nearby next to her bed. He studied her with those bright green eyes of his.

She could tell that he was choosing his words carefully, everyone was choosing their words carefully around her lately like they were walking on eggshells. It vexed her that Sharrkan, the most arrogant of them all, even acted like she was something so completely fragile that she might break any second. This ruffled her, especially that look of pity in the swordsman's face.

"It doesn't matter, they don't work anyways since I can't use magic anymore. And you don't need beat around the bush like that, we all know what's happening to me…" She looked away from him and stared at her pale hands. They looked quite boney at the moment. "I know that I am dying," she mutters.

Her statement hangs in the air like a ghost you really didn't want to see. She could hear Sharrkan shift uncomfortably in his seat while muttering something under his breath.

"Why are you here?" She asks after a while, breaking their silence.

"Didn't you know it was my shift? I suppose you're usually sleeping when its my turn." He replies exasperated.

"Didn't you know that it is rude to enter a lady's bedroom without knocking? I don't need a babysitter."

"Most women are overjoyed to see me come into their rooms. Besides, I didn't come in here because I _wanted_ to. Sinbad wants all of us taking watch in case something happens to you, and I did knock."

"Nuh-uh. You did not, I would've heard it." She turned around to face him. The very sight of him in her room irked her.

"I did knock at first, but when you didn't answer I thought you had passed out like last time. So I just came in here to be sure and I found you staring at _seashells_ like you expected them to do a backflip or something." He choked back a laugh.

She rolled her eyes. "You're infuriating. Someone like you couldn't possibly comprehend the complexity behind these shells. Not that you would care anyways. It's magic after all," she sniffed.

"If magic turns you into a zombie like that, then of course swords are much better," he patted his sword strapped to his side while snidely smirking at her. "Being a swordsman is definitely the best!"

"If playing with swords creates someone as arrogant and dimwitted as you, than I would choose magic over _that_ any day. Truthfully, I would choose magic over anything."

She felt momentarily satisfied when he wiped that smug look off his face. Then he suddenly knitted his eyebrows together and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Nope. Swords are the best by far."

She groaned. Why did he have to be like this? "Oh? And what makes you so sure?"

"A swordsman doesn't die from using his own sword to protect others."

She squeezed her eyes shut while pressing her fingers to her temples. This was _so_ not the way she wanted to spend her evening. "Honestly. If there is anything that is killing me, it's you."

His comment had really struck a chord. He shouldn't rub salt in her wound like that. Why couldn't he just be a normal person and not argue with her all the time? Why did he have to jarr her into a bad mood like this? It was annoying before when she was healthy, but now she felt that she just didn't have the energy for his antics anymore. She just wished that he would go away. He hates her, and she hates him. He hates being forced to keep watch over her, and she hates having him being around her so much.

The walls of her room seemed to be suffocating her. She needed to get out of here, she needed to get away from this man. He is possibly detrimental to her health. She pushed her chair out from under her as she shot up from her desk, earning a questioning look from Sharrkan.

"I'm taking a bath. I need to be someplace other than here," she announced. "Unfortunately for you, you cannot follow me into the bath."

He nodded, making the chains on his body jingle. "I'm tired of spending all of my evenings here too. Tomorrow there is a festival going on in the city tomorrow night. It's smaller than Mahrahan, but there should be lots going on. Let's go there instead of waste our time in here again."

This took her by surprise. All what she wanted was to take a bath. And where was his snarky retort about the bath thing? Why did he suddenly want to take her to this festival? Sharrkan was acting… Very un-Sharrkan like at the moment.

She stared at him questioningly. It took a few moments for her to reply. "I'm on bedrest," she said flatly. She didn't really know what else to say.

He raised an eyebrow. "You seem like you are feeling better than you have in a long time. We haven't argued like that in such a long time. Plus, you're grumpier than usual, so I think some fresh air outside of the palace will do you some good."

"I was told to stay put here, in the palace," she argued.

"It's fine, we won't tell the others about this. What they don't know can't hurt them right? Don't be so headstrong and just accept my generosity for once okay?" She could tell that his irritation levels were rising each time she was stalling her answer.

"I don't know," she sighed. She tightened her robes around her and started making her way to her door.

"Look, you've been in here for months. Don't you want to go out for a change of scenery? I don't really have a choice, but I would rather watch over you out there-" he pointed towards the window "-than in here."

Yamuraiha stiffened at his words. _Watch over you?_ "What are you, my mother?"

He snorted and stood up to follow her out the door. "I'm hungry."

But she stopped when she reached her door and rested her hand against the hard wood. She really did feel better than she had in months. She hates to admit it, but Sharrkan is right for once. Solomon knows she will never say that out loud! She really did need to go out, at least for a little while before...

"Okay, I'll go with you," she said in a flurry while ushering her door open.

"Really? I actually thought you would say no, Miss goodie-goodie." He grinned at her.

Yamuraiha scowled. They were outside of her room now. She could hear the hinges of the door 'squeak' as it closed on its own. "Do you want me to change my mind?"

Sharrkan laughed. "No, no. That wouldn't do. Get lots of sleep tomorrow, we're going to the festival!"

Yamuraiha tried to cover his mouth. "Shhh! Do you want everyone to hear you? I'm not supposed to go out into the city at all." She hissed in his ear.

He chuckled lightly while leaning down to whisper into her ear. "I'll come around this time tomorrow, and then we can leave."

He pulled away grinning. She watched his retreating form as he swaggered through the hallways leading towards the kitchens.

She watched him leave feeling utterly confused. One moment he pities her, then he argues and mocks her, and then the next moment he tries to take her out somewhere? Who does he think he is? She shook her head.

"I will never understand you," she murmured.

She turned around and rather unsteadily walked towards the baths through the corridors.


	2. Her Guardians

The design of the baths at Sinbad's palace were lavishly designed. Tall walls sloped upwards to form arches that supported the domed ceiling. The ceiling itself was adorned with tiny stones to form a massive mosaic that portrayed Sindria in early morning sunlight. It was beautiful and if the sunlight from the windows were positioned just right, it reflected off of the bath water onto the mosaic making sunbeams that rippled against the pictured countryside.

The bath itself was enormous. It took up most of the square footage of the room, and it was fashioned more like a shallow swimming pool than an actual bath. The size was due from the perverse fact that during the construction of the palace, Sinbad had asked for a sizable bath that could fit him and all the women bewitched by him. However if someone wished to bathe alone, the large doors that lead into the cavernous room were able to lock out any unwanted visitors.

The water that was used to wash in was always clean because it naturally flowed in and out of tiny ducts on the tiled bottom of the bath. Warm steamy water that was naturally heated from a hot spot beneath the ground flowed back into the pool in the very same ducts as the old water flowed out. It was like a neverending filtration system.

Statues of Sinbad and his eight generals adorned the outer edges of the room. Many found the statues quite creepy. Some say that there are hidden looking glasses in the statue's eyes where Sinbad himself can peep on the women who choose to bathe here. Of course there are other private bathrooms in the palace, but individuals such as Yamuraiha found this bath to be incredibly relaxing.

The young woman undid the braid that was holding back her long blue tresses. She combed through the gorgeous locks with her fingers before she untied her robes and let them slip off of her ivory skin to the floor. She looked at her own image in a mirror that was placed decoratively against the wall. It wasn't hard to tell that Yamuraiha had lost weight. She wasn't overweight to begin with, so this kind of weight loss was certainly an unhealthy one. '_This is what sleeping for most of the day and hardly eating does to you I suppose,'_ she thought to herself.

The air felt cold on Yamuraiha's bare skin so she scurried to the stairwell that lead into the water, and lowered her thin body into the steamy water. She let out a contented sigh once she settled into the warmth of the bath. Her eyes met the unblinking stare of Drakon's statue. Of course She didn't believe in the tall tales of the looking glasses. She knew that Sinbad had _some _manners; he wouldn't peek on any lady unless he had permission to. But the statues did unsettle her nerves somewhat. The thought of her comrades watching her bathe would be nightmarish to anyone. She already had enough of their watchful eyes in her life as it was.

There was… An accident, and she couldn't keep the secret of her dying away from everyone any longer. Once the realization of her slow demise dawned upon everyone, Sinbad set up watches where the eight generals would take turns keeping company with her before switching with someone else. The only time she would have any privacy to herself, was when she was bathing or dressing. Usually she spent her day sleeping most of the time, so the times she was awake was the time slot where the noisiest of the generals would keep watch.

Hinahoho would bring his children in with him to help keep her company. Yamuraiha found their presence delightful, they were such a fun loving bunch and she couldn't help but love them. Their energetic enthusiasm was downright contagious, and she found it very uplifting. However if the gigantic kids became too rambunctious, their father would send them away without another word.

"Sorry," he would say apologetically.

"It's okay. I love having them around," she would assure him.

"They're a rowdy crowd, and they can get to be a bit too much. I guess you won't fully understand until-" He would cut himself off before finishing his sentence. She couldn't help but sympathize with him. Hinahoho adored children, and she knew that he felt sorry that there wouldn't ever be a time in her life for Yamuraiha to have children of her own.

Besides Hinahoho, Pisti would visit with Yamuraiha almost everyday. She was always non-stop chatter, and the two of them would talk the entire time before it was someone else's shift or Yamuraiha drifted into sleep. Pisti was so animated, always cheering up Yamuraiha in any way possible. She would reenact some fun memories from their past, or something whimsical that had happened to someone they both knew when Yamuraiha wasn't present. Whatever Pisti did, it was sure to make her close friend Yamuraiha cry with laughter.

"Pisti! Oh stop-" and Yamuraiha was lost in a fit of giggles.

"But that's not all! When the little old lady saw that Masrur totally trashed her garden gnomes, she like, assumed her ultimate form and started throwing punches and other crazy stuff! Boy, she sure had Masrur run for his money!" Pisti then started frantically running in place pretending to be Masrur, and she even held the same straight face that he constantly wore.

"You've got him pinned!" Yamuraiha laughed at Pisti's impersonation.

"Oh I wish you could have seen the look on my date's- um nevermind." Pisti suddenly looked around the room sheepishly.

"Date?"

"Well, I forgot to mention that I was on a date with some guy when we found Masrur…" She looked down at the ground and scuffed her feet against the wood floor before shooting her head up and waving her hands in front of her. "It wasn't that fun! Honestly the part with Masrur was the only good part! I didn't even like the guy one bit, I don't think I will ever go on a date ever again because of him. Why I-"

"Pisti!" Yamuraiha interrupted. She sighed and gripped the sheets on her bed a bit tighter. It wasn't any news to her that Pisti was so popular with men, she didn't like how her friend always hid the details of her dates from Yamuraiha now days. "It's okay, don't worry about me. You can keep dating people, and tell me all about your dates for Solomon's sake! It doesn't bother me at all."

"Thanks, Yamu." Pisti couldn't hide her relief from Yamuraiha. Yamuraiha guessed that her little blonde friend acted the way she did because she thought that Yamuraiha would never have the chance to meet her significant other. She was probably right of course.

Yamuraiha appreciated her friends' concern for her. Even when she was asleep, she was aware of the others present in her room. One time she awakened for only a second, and she noticed Spartos quietly dozing in the lounge chair in the corner of her room. She even noticed Drakon when she was in her lightest of sleeping. He watched over her like a guardian dragon of some sort. Sometimes he'll bring his wife in with him, and Yamuraiha swears that one time they made out on her dresser. Though she hopes that it was only her imagination.

She knew for sure that Sinbad watched over her everyday, just like he had since she was just a child. Sometimes he would have Ja'far and Masrur with him. Sometimes he would just have Ja'far, and other times just Masrur. Or the three of them would seperately watch over her by themselves. Either way, she knew that she was constantly being looked after by the others. The love that they held for her made her want to break down and sob. However there was one person that she had believed was exempted from watch duty, someone that didn't necessarily care about her in the way the others did.

Sharrkan.

Yamuraiha sighed and sunk down deeper in the steamy water. She looked at his statue on the far right of the room. Thankfully it wasn't very lifelike. The figure portrayed Sharrkan as a noble hero, and it didn't even show a hint of the idiotic arrogance that annoyed her so much. She glared at that statue, remembering the night's earlier events.

She had thought that he didn't join in the Yamuraiha babysitting game like the others. Sharrkan mentioned something about his shift, and that she never noticed him there because she was asleep. Of course! It made perfect sense to her now. He had to take his turn to watch her like the others but he was assigned the time where she was in her deepest of sleep, probably to prevent them from arguing. However lately she has been feeling a bit like her old self, and as a result she has been more alert and unfortunately awake for when it was time for the swordsman to stand vigil.

It unsettled her that he had probably spent countless hours alone with her in her room while she was asleep. Of course nothing had ever happened, but she didn't like the idea of being in his presence more than necessary. Which was why she was confused as to why she agreed to his… Invitation? She couldn't really put a name to it. It was almost like he had asked her out on a date.

Her belly gave an uncomfortable twist. No this wasn't a date, he didn't date people. He spent all of his love at the brothels with women he hardly knew. Their 'outing' was just an excuse for him to get out of sitting in her room all night, and Solomon knows that they both needed the break!

She was brought out of her thoughts by the moon that was rose into one of the windows. She stared at it for awhile, realizing that it was in a completely new phase than the last time she had seen it.

"Is it really this late?" She suddenly asked herself. She glanced at her fingers and saw that they were all wrinkled and pruny which confirmed that she had sat in the bath for too long.

Yamuraiha realized that if she didn't hurry up soon, her absence in her room was bound to get noticed soon. So she quickly finished washing herself and splashed out of the bath in a manner that was not at all graceful. She grabbed a towel that was hanging on a rack not far from the railing of the stairwell and dried herself throughly before pulling her her robes back onto her body. When she grabbed the door knob, she realized that she hadn't locked the door. She quietly thanked Solomon that no one wanted to take a late night bath as well.

She quietly swung the door open and tip-toed down the corridors to her room. Before she opened the door, she silently prayed that Sharrkan wasn't back from his snack break yet. She sighed with relief when she opened the door and realized that she was alone. She stood there for awhile, just thinking about what was to come the following day. She suddenly felt sick with nervousness. This obviously was a _terrible_ idea. She and Sharrkan hated each other; it will be impossible for either of them to enjoy themselves tomorrow at the festival. She seriously considered opting out, but then she realized that would be rude. No one likes being stood up. Except this wasn't a date.

Yamuraiha sighed. She couldn't worry about this all night. She hated to admit it but she better follow her rival's advice and get plenty of sleep before the festival. Suddenly realizing how exhausted she was, she groggily dressed into her sleeping robes in the privacy of her room. She crawled into her bed pulling her covers over her, her eyelids feeling quite heavy. She glanced at her door once more before slipping away into sleep.

_I wonder when he'll be back..._


	3. The Festival

Yamuraiha woke up in a cold sweat to early morning darkness filling her room. With a swish of her bed sheets, she shot upright into a sitting position. Her hands were clutching her chest to try and steady her racing heart. She heard another person stir from the lounge chair.

"Yamuraiha?" The sleepy voice of Spartos called out to her in alarm. "Are you okay?"

She tried to calm her nerves before shakily replying, "I'm fine. I just had a bad dream, don't worry." She could feel his tremendous relief wash over her like a tidal wave.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head. "No, thank you though." She eased her body back down to rest her head on her soft feather pillow, pulling her covers back on top of her. "Try to get some more sleep," she urged her friend.

"I'm not really supposed to sleep," he yawned.

"It's okay, I won't tell. You need your sleep too," she assured him. His only reply was a snore.

As tired as Yamuraiha felt, she couldn't fall asleep as speedily has Spartos had. She could see his silhouette sitting in her lounge chair, his elbow planted on the armrest so he could rest his head into his hand. She felt envious over his ability to fall asleep in mere seconds. Even though she slept a lot, sometimes it felt like she hadn't slept at all because of her dreams. Her nightmares usually weren't frequent, but they were coming to her more often and were becoming progressively worse and more vivid as of late.

She squeezed her eyes shut and tightened her grip on her sheets when the images of her latest dream seized her. She could still hear the screams, smell the blood mixed in with smoke. She could still feel the pain she felt when she saw the lifeless bodies littering the streets. How badly it hurt her when her loved ones died in agony in cradled in her arms. It was her fault. It was because she wasn't strong enough to protect them that they had to suffer.

Yamuraiha shook her head, and rolled onto her right side straining to get the sounds and images out of her head. Suddenly she opened her eyes and allowed her body to relax against her mattress. It was quiet in her room, besides Spartos' gentle snores echoing across the room. The quiet bothered her though, and she felt utterly alone in the darkness even if there was someone else in the room besides her.

She knew her friends cared for her deeply, but they couldn't possibly understand what she was going through. The first time she had blacked out had been a complete shock to her. She knew that managing the magical barrier protecting Sindria on her own would eventually take a toll on her, but she hadn't realized it would be so soon.

It had happened after the attack on Sindria. Yamuraiha was in her lab conducting some experiments, when her surveillance crystal shattered to a million tiny fragments. She stood up in astonishment and then she felt a pain in her chest like her lungs were being stretched in different directions. Her heart was pounding so hard it hurt to breathe, and her head was in so much pain that it felt like it was being split open. The excruciating burn grew to the point where she had lost consciousness.

She remembered being shaken awake with a splitting headache, and she heard Sinbad's voice yelling something at her. Everything he shouted was totally incoherent to her, and she could hardly see his face through her blurred vision. She could feel blood trickling out of her ears, eyes, mouth, and nose and him desperately trying to stop the bleeding with his robes.

When she finally found the ability to speak, she told Sin in a voice so scratchy she was sure it wasn't hers, just two words: "I'm sorry." Then she just sobbed in his arms until she slipped into unconsciousness again.

When she had awakened, she was aware of the bandages wrapping around her face and she was lying in her bed. She became suddenly aware of one other person hovering nearby and turned her aching head to the side so her swelling eyes could settle on her king. He was sitting in a chair beside her bed, with a face so full of worry it just made her want to cry again. When he noticed that she was awake, the tension lines in his face only deepened.

"Yamuraiha," was all he said.

It was quiet before she was able to croak out a response. "How long have I been out?" She asked.

"About six hours I would say." Sinbad rubbed his eyes with a fist. "Quite possibly the most stressful six hours of my life," he claimed with a heavy sigh. "We almost lost you, Yamu."

Her eyes stung as she tried to hold back salty tears. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to make you worry."

He reached a hand out to comfortingly hold her hand, like a good big brother would. "I came to ask you why the protective barrier around Sindria crashed, and I found you lying on the floor half dead. Can you please tell me what's happening to you?"

She stared at the tall ceiling in her bedroom. How could she possibly explain _this_ to him? He remained patient and stayed silent allowing her to collect her own thoughts. She decided that he deserved to know after what had transpired earlier.

"When a magician spends a large quantity of magoi over a long period of time," she began, "it will eventually take a toll on their body. Managing a spell of an extremely high caliber, like a protective barrier for example, is lethal to the caster," she closed her eyes, not bearing to look at him. "Especially if there is only one magician maintaining it," she whispered.

Sin stared at her in shock. "Yamuraiha, are you saying that you're…"

She nodded. "I'm going to die."

Silence. Sinbad suddenly dropped her hand and stood up and faced the window overlooking the kingdom that he ruled.

"Yamuraiha, I forbid you to manage the barrier by yourself ever again."

She shook her head. "No, its too late to reverse the effects. I feel like… A rubber band that has been stretched so thin that it finally snapped." Yamuraiha lifted a dainty hand and studied it for a moment. "But I feel that I still have the ability to use my magic. I'm going to keep on managing the barrier while I still can."

"Why?" He asked her in agony. "I'm begging you now Yamuraiha, don't do this. Sindria still needs you. You have your whole life ahead of you. It's too soon for you to join the Rukh."

She smiled at him painfully. "I am so sorry to make you worry like this, but it's a magicians duty to protect others. I want to fulfill my own role as a magician as long as I can."

The King of the Seven Seas seas ran a hand through his dark hair and approached her carefully. He kneeled in front of her, and held her shoulders in his hands so that she would meet his eyes.

"Yamu, please listen to me carefully: Do-Not-Do-This. Maybe if we can bring Aladdin back, since he is a magi and all, perhaps he can-"

"No there isn't anything he can do for me; even if he is a magi. Don't bring him back from his journey so he can fret over me." Aladdin has been away with Alibaba and Morgiana on one of their adventures for a few months now. No one knew when they would return.

A crash sounded in the hallway outside of her room. Yamuraiha could hear the voices of the other generals yelling at each other through the cracks of her door.

Sinbad sighed. "The others have been worrying about you this entire time. I had to order them to go out into the halls so that you could rest in peace." He rose to his feet gracefully. "I think it is time to for me to tell them."

"No! Please don't say anything to them," she begged. "I don't want to make any of you worry."

"They're already worried. I think they have the right to know what's happening to their friend, Yamu." He wiped a few tears off of her face. "I wish I could make you change your mind, but I can see I'm not going to win this fight. Get some sleep."

That had happened a few months ago. Another accident like the first has occurred since then, however Yamuraiha was in a coma for six weeks the second time around, and she had ultimately lost her ability to use magic at all. However she couldn't remember what happened during the second accident.

Yamuraiha curled into a ball within her bed, and she noticed the darkness was beginning to lift. Dawn was filtering through her window. Spartos snored gently in his slumber. She then realized that she wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon. She sat up and watched the sun rise, turning everything in her room into a soft golden color.

'_The sunrise would look so much prettier on the balcony,'_ she thought to herself. She pulled the covers off of herself and slipped her feet out of bed, feeling the cold hardwood floors on her bare feet. She carefully tip-toed passed Spartos, and snuck through her door and tip-toed into the corridor.

She was headed towards the balcony, when she heard Sinbad's and Ja'far's hushed voices sounding from the king's main office. She was planning on slinking passed when she heard her name being mentioned.

"It's about Yamuraiha…" It was Ja'far speaking.

Curious, she crept closer. She knew it was bad to eavesdrop but since they were talking about her she decided that was a good enough excuse to tune in. She leaned her ear against the door.

"The doctors came and had a word with me last night." Ja'far continued on.

"And?" Sinbad's voice asked expectantly.

"They still haven't found a cure for her."

She almost laughed. Of course there wouldn't be a cure! She has been saying that this entire time.

"Then its just as she said," Sinbad sighed.

It was quiet before Ja'far continued on. "And based off of the tests they have taken from her…" She frowned. Tests? She doesn't remember any tests being taken. She supposed the doctors could have come in sometime when she was sleeping and conducted them then. She listened more closely.

She heard Ja'far inhale and exhale slowly. She heard the creak of the floorboards as he shifted his weight uncomfortably. _'Just say it!' _She willed silently.

"Unfortunately, they say she only has less than a year to live. They said it would be a miracle if she lived over-"

She jumped away from the door as quietly as possible. She instantly regretted that she listened to their conversation. Only less than a year? She knew the time she had left was short, but not that short. This was… Devastating. She thought she had already come to terms with the little time she had left, but now she just felt like a giant void had opened up in front of her.

She felt a wave of nausea flood her senses, so she shakily slumped back to her room not even bothering if anyone heard her. Luckily she made it back to her room without being confronted by anyone, and so she crept passed Spartos and crawled back into her bed. He continued to rest peacefully, while Yamuraiha felt like she was carrying the weight of the world.

* * *

Sleep came easily to Yamuraiha even to her own surprise. When she had awoken, It was almost sundown. She somehow managed to even sleep through Pisti's and Hinahoho's visits. When she sat up, she caught the eye of Ja'far.

"Well, good morning! Or maybe I should say good _evening_," he chuckled lightly mostly to himself.

She didn't say anything and just looked out her window. After hearing what he told Sinbad this morning, she found that she couldn't meet his eyes. She would look anywhere but his eyes, fearing that she would give herself away if he could read her face.

He seemed to sense her standoffish attitude. "Is everything alright, Yamuraiha?" He asked with utmost concern.

She nodded in response.

Ja'far shrugged and slowly stood up from the lounge chair. "I was just about to leave. Sin left a huge stack of paperwork for me to complete, and unfortunately I have no time to talk," he announced. With his arms folded he walked towards the door, his footsteps hardly making a sound. "Sharrkan should come by in just a few minutes," he informed her.

Yamuraiha blinked in surprise. "Oh, I almost forgot!" She exclaimed.

Ja'far stopped and turned around to lift an eyebrow at her, though she was still looking away from him. "Almost forgot what?" He asked her innocently.

She momentarily panicked. She hadn't meant to say anything out loud, but she had forgotten about her planned outing with Sharrkan. No one was supposed to know about that so she quickly said, "I almost forgot that Sharrkan has a shift too." Suddenly a question that she has been meaning to ask either Ja'far or Sinbad bubbled out of her mouth. "Why does he have to take watch too? I can stand the others, but I _really_ don't like the idea of spending so much time with him whether I'm awake or not. I'm sure he feels the same way," she added when she remembered he said something about how it was a waste of time to him to take watch.

She dared to meet Ja'far's gaze. He smiled at her her like he knew something she didn't. "Oh lighten up Yamu," he said. "It honestly can't be that horrible can it? Sin wants us _all_ to watch over you."

"We hate each other," she protested.

He chuckled and faced the door before urging it open. "I think Sharrkan cares about you more than you are willing to give him credit for," he said over his shoulder. "Goodnight, Yamu." The door clicked shut and he was gone.

She let out a disgruntled huff. What did he think he was saying? They hated each other… Didn't they? Of course they were willing to fight by each other's side in the past, but they still had a heated rivalry. However, they still had to spend their evening together in each other's company at the festival tonight. She inwardly groaned and started rubbing her temples. This could _not_ go well.

She wasn't sure what she was thinking when she agreed to this. She had to back out. All what they would do was argue the entire time. There was no way that could be good for either of them, and quite frankly she didn't have the patience for it anymore.

But on the the other hand, it wouldn't be much better if they were to be cooped up in her room together. If anything, it would probably be worse in here than it would be during the festival. This was her room, and at least out there it was neutral territory for the both of them.

Yamuraiha sighed. No need to agonize on what to do and put this off any longer. She looked down at her sleeping clothes and decided that she should wear something more appropriate. She threw off her covers and gently placed her dainty feet on the ground. She sat on the edge of the bed and let her thoughts drift about the approaching night. She shook her head. If she procrastinated any longer, Sharrkan would walk in on her changing.

She dashed out of her bed so quick she made herself dizzy, but Sharrkan was the last person she wanted to have see her without any clothes on. She threw open the drawers of her dresser and started rummaging through them, searching for something she could wear. She finally settled for a light pink chiffon type of dress. She dropped her white robes she was wearing and unfolded the dress before slipping it on.

Relief washed over her once she was fully clothed. She frowned. This outfit fit her too loosely like all the others. However the dress itself was lovely. It was a short sleeved dress that reached to about her ankles with slits on both sides that stopped to about her knees. Intricate gold embroidery was stitched around all the openings of the dress. It was simple, yet it looked extremely flattering on Yamuraiha. She was slipping on her black flats when she heard a knock at the door, and her heart leapt into her throat.

She didn't know why she felt so nervous, it was just stupid Sharrkan afterall. She carefully walked over and gently placed her hand over the door handle. She hesitated before opening the door to reveal Sharrkan grinning triumphantly down at her.

"I knocked," he stated.

"I noticed," she replied without moving.

"Are you ready?" He asked. "Let's go before someone sees us."

Yamuraiha sighed. "Give me a sec," she commanded. She ran to her dresser and snatched her brush that was sitting on top of it. She ran the brush a few times through her long blue locks while watching herself in the mirror hanging above her dresser. She could feel Sharrkan's impatience as he watched her brush her hair.

"You look fine," he told her while holding the door ajar to watch for anyone passing by in the hallway. "We have to leave before someone comes this way."

"You don't look half bad yourself," she sniffed. Though he was just wearing his regular Heliohaptian attire with his sword strapped by his side. She parted the last pieces of her hair and made sure that everything was in place before she nodded at him. "Alright I'm ready. Let's go."

Because the two of them were apart of Sinbad's eight generals, they knew the perfect spots to slip past the guards unseen. They didn't say a word to each other until they were outside of the Palace grounds and in the perimeters of the city.

"It feels good to finally get out of there." Sharrkan sighed while stretching his arms.

Yamuraiha raised her eyebrows at him. "I thought you spent all your nights with women and alcohol in the local brothels? That's outside of the palace grounds."

He snorted. "I have to keep an eye on you now, remember?"

"Unfortunately," she said flatly. How could she keep forgetting? She just never thought he would do something like that for her.

They started down the steps into the festival. Music could be heard from every street. The flames of the torches seemed to dance with the notes that were played. Vendors set up booths where participants could play games and win prizes. Others would advertise food and other goods that they had to offer. Children ran around from booth to booth with giggling voices. Families and couples of all ages roamed around the glowing city. The beauty and feeling of it all brought a smile to Yamuraiha lips.

She and Sharrkan argued on what to do first, but they settled on having a competition between the two of them to see who could win the most games. Yamuraiha won most of the analytical one's, while Sharrkan excelled at games that required more physical strength. Sometimes they fought over who won, usually not to an aggressive extent. Though during a game of _'pin the tail on Baal,'_ the yelling and the profanities between the two of them grew to an extent where the manager of the booth had to come and ask them to leave. They came to the conclusion that it was a draw between the two.

A highlight to Yamuraiha's night was when Sharrkan somehow managed to get roped into a palm tree climbing competition. She laughed as she watched him shimmy his way up the skinny trunk of the tree. To her surprise, he came out on top. She had never seen someone climb a palm tree with such ease and speed as he had.

"Who knew that you could climb a tree like a monkey," she teased. "I mean you look like one but…" She giggled.

He rolled his eyes at her and took a sip out his coconut drink that he had won for the both of them. "Well _duh_! I grew up in Heliohapt; Palm trees are the _only_ trees that grew around there to climb."

She took a sip out of her own coconut drink. The warm milky liquid dribbled soothingly down her throat. She was surprised when he spoke of his homeland to her. He never talks about Heliohapt to anyone, especially Yamuraiha. She had never been there herself, so she decided to take this opportunity to learn more about the arid country.

"Palm trees can really grow there, huh? What else is there in Heliohapt?" She asked eagerly.

He shrugged. "That's about it," he replied with an edge to his voice.

"Oh," she said crestfallen.

Guess that would be the end to their conversation about his home country. She knew that Heliohapt was a _very_ touchy subject to him, and she knew better than to keep pressing. He was a banished prince after all, and only Sinbad knew all the details of his exile.

Awkward silence fell between the two. She could feel his sudden coldness towards her like a dark rain cloud. Guilt swarmed her, she had most likely tossed him into bitter memories of his past that he wished to forget. She knew how he felt since she had plenty of her own memories she wished would just disappear.

"You know," she tried as an attempt to lighten the mood between them. "I have to admit that I've had a fun time tonight, Sharrkan." She confessed to him. "You're actually a lot less annoying than I thought."

That did the trick. He looked at her while cocking an eyebrow.

"Now that's something that I never thought I would hear you say," he chuckled. "And you know I'm actually starting to like you. You're a lot more tolerable when you're asleep anyways," he added while sipping from his straw. She could see him grinning while giving her a sidelong glance.

She smacked his elbow playfully with her free hand, making him spill some of his drink. He frowned down disapprovingly at her, but his golden eyes were glittering.

"Now look what you did...Perfectly good coconut milk gone to waste…" He whined.

"No use crying over spilled milk," she bantered.

The two of them laughed lightly together before he quietly watched her. She met his warm gaze, and she felt her belly do a flip-flop. They both looked quickly away. Sharrkan's stomach growled.

"I'm hungry. Looks like the coconut milk didn't do much good for me," he chuckled while patting his rumbling belly. The jerky movements made his chains jingle.

"You're always hungry," she snarked.

"It's called being a man. I'm going to get some fried octopus or something," he announced. His eyes searched her over, making her feel uncomfortable. "And you look like you could use a fried octopus or two," he added with a frown.

She folded her thin arms in front of her defensively. "It's because I don't really have much of an appetite these days…" Her eyes darted around for an escape. She settled her gaze on some flower shops a little ways down from the food booths. She pointed at the shops and said, "I'm going to look at those flowers over there while you get some food. I'll meet you over there." Without waiting for his reply she dashed off.

Finally breaking free of his watchful eyes gave her sense of relief. Sometimes he was just so confusing, and… _Frustrating_. She never laughs, argues, or defends herself as quickly as whenever she is with Sharrkan. It was mentally and physically taxing, and sometimes she just needed a break from him. Now just happened to be one of those times.

She drank the rest of her coconut milk then tossed the empty shell in a nearby waste bin. Vendors tried to persuade her and other onlookers to buy bouquets, flower arrangements, or headbands crafted out of blossoms. The air smelled of many different fragrances at once, making her feel feel slightly intoxicated. She spotted a large open crate full of her favorite perennials: Blue Roses. She practically skipped over there to inhale roses' sweet fragrance.

"Yamuraiha?" She froze when she heard a familiar voice.

She looked up and beheld one of her past suitors, named Dhan. He was a magician like herself, but not as highly skilled as she. At least when she was a magician. He was holding a flower arrangement in a cream colored vase. He looked like a kid who got caught in the cookie jar.

"Dhan… It's good to see you again," she said awkwardly.

"Oh it's good to see you too. How have you been?" He asked just as awkwardly.

"I've been doing well, thanks." She didn't even bother explaining her condition to him. She glanced at the pot of flowers. "Who are those for?" She asked him curiously.

Dhan turned beet red. "Oh, well these are for my… my girlfriend," he told her while nervously dragging his feet on the ground.

An old wound opened up, and Yamuraiha wished she could just melt into the cobblestone street. "They're lovely and I wish the two of you the best. It was really good to see you again-"

"Yamuraiha, wait." Dhan called out before she could crawl miserably away. His eyes darted around as if looking for someone before he spoke to her very carefully. "I'm sorry what happened between us. About what I said the last time, it was because-"

"Oh Yamuraiha there you are!" Sharrkan's voice called out. She turned around to see him carrying long sticks skewering large pieces of what looked like pineapple. He came "I couldn't find any fried octopus, but I found some grilled pine-"

_CRASH! _They both jumped and stared at the broken vase of flowers lying on the ground. Yamuraiha was shocked to see Dhan trembling so hard it made his curly brown hair shake. His mouth was opening and closing like a fish. His face was contorted in utter terror, and he raised a shaky hand at Sharrkan. He started gurgling some noises and it took Yamuraiha a second to understand that he was trying to speak.

"You-You- I promise I DID NOT TOUCH HER!" Dhan turned tail and ran for his life in the other direction screeching profanities and other words that were unintelligible to her.

Yamuraiha stared blankly after him. What in Solomon's name just happened? She faced Sharrkan, and he seemed to gain some sudden interest in some peonies hanging in a pot. He looked like a guilty puppy. Witnesses stared at him like he had attempted to murder Dhan with two very large pieces of pineapple. Then something inside of her clicked, and realization dawned upon her. She felt her insides burn with rage.

She pointed an angry finger at him. "Why you little-"

Sharrkan shoved some pineapple in her face attempting to distract her. "You should really try this Pineapple, Yamu-" he was cut off when the furious woman sent the tropical fruit flying out of his hands. She grabbed the chain around his neck and pulled on him like a leashed dog to bring his face closer to hers.

"Listen you," she hissed. "Just what did you do to Dhan? What did you do to _ALL _the others?" She screeched. She didn't care that she was making a scene, and that everyone was watching them. She didn't care that Sharrkan was mirroring her own outraged expression. His nose was wrinkled feraly and he was clenching his teeth in a snarl.

"I didn't do anything to the prick!" He tried to lightly push away from Yamuraiha without hurting her, but she held a tight grip on his chain.

"You're lying!" She felt her blood boil. All the missing puzzle pieces came together and it all made perfect sense to her now. All the countless failed dates, being stood up innumerable times, the constant heartbreak, rejection lines like, "It's nerve-wracking to be around you," or "I'm afraid of what will happen if we see each other." It was because of _him. _It was all _his_ fault."Tell me!"

Sharkkan tried to pry her fingers off the chain, but to no avail. "I just told them to keep their distance or else."

"You _threatened_ them?" She was appalled. "No wonder Dhan was so frightened! You told him that you were going to hurt him!"

"If he touched you! I couldn't stand those guys, I say they got what they deserved!" Sharrkan added defensively. "It wasn't just me either! I even got Masrur to-"

"I cannot believe the nerve of you!" She roared. "Remember what I said earlier about learning to like you? You can forget I said that. I can hardly stand you, I absolutely Hate you!" Her eyes stung with hot salty tears. "Why did you do it? To make me miserable? Well congratulations Sharrkan you won. You took away any chance of happiness that I had. I hope you're happy."

She was on the verge of bawling. She knew this was a terrible idea right from the beginning. She should have never agreed to this.

He stopped his struggling. He looked like she had just slapped him across the face. "I never meant-" he suddenly gasped in surprise. To Yamuraiha's confusion he threw himself on top of her and she let out an astonished yelp. She felt his chest smash against her face and the rest of her falling backwards… Into the crate full of blue roses.

Luckily the roses broke their fall, and she squirmed underneath his weight. "_What _in Solomon's name…?" She mumbled against his chest. He smelled like spices despite the overpowering fragrance of the roses surrounding them. She felt his weight shift on top of her and the pressure was off of her body as he kneeled over her, and her breath hitched.

His face was so close to hers that she could feel his rapid breathing blow across and tickle her face. It gave her chills down her spine, and she was sure he could see the heat rising to her face. But then their eyes met, and Yamuraiha almost gasped.

His eyes were a brilliant bright emerald green. She always knew that they were green, but she had never had such a close look at them like this. Well she supposed she had, she was just too irritated with him to notice. Little gold flecks started around his dark pupil intensely, but then they flared outward and grew smaller in number as they reached the outer edge of his iris. A bronze ringlet circled the pupil in the middle of the iris, like a halo. '_His eyes are like the sun_...'

She was whisked away from her thoughts when she was suddenly aware of the chortles of laughter around them. She heard Sharkkan grunt above her as he stood up. He was glaring, but not at her, someone behind her.

When her senses came back to her she could hear someone shouting, "What are you two doing?"

Afraid that it was Sinbad or one of the others she sat up and looked behind her to look at the person yelling at them. She could feel plant matter float off of her as she did it was no one they knew, but he looked like he was about to pull his hair out. His mustache quivered and his large belly jiggled because he was trembling with so much anger.

"Didn't you see what happened?" Sharrkan snapped at the man while running a tanned hand through his hair. Yamuraiha noticed that he was holding his other sun kissed hand out to her. She took it and he effortlessly lifted her to her feet.

"Yeah, I saw you two making out in my roses that I'm trying to sell! Do you know how hard it is to grow this species of _Rosaceae? _All my hard work… Ruined." He shook his head in disbelief.

"We were not making out!" Sharrkan shouted back in defense. "I was shoved by someone from behind! I'm sure there some roses that can be salvaged..."

Yamuraiha heard a fit of giggles sound behind them. She turned around and saw a group of boys around Aladdin's age look too jubilant to be innocent. Obviously they were the ones behind this entire mess.

"You boys!" She called out to them venomously.

They yelped and sped away laughing. She gave chase while yelling at them. "Just what were you doing?" They split up and ran in different directions when they noticed that she was running after them.

"We were helping that mister out!" Guffawed one.

"Lovebirds!" Mocked another followed by multiple snickers.

Yamuraiha slid to a stop and shook her fist after them. "We are not Lovebirds!" More sniggers and then the boys disappeared into the crowd.

She let out a heavy sigh and turned back to look at what was transpiring between Sharrkan and the salesman. They were both squatting next to the crate and the portly many was sorting out the good roses from the bad while arguing with Sharrkan. The man was crying a steady stream of tears while scolding him between sobs. Sharrkan scratched his head while trying to give the gardener his condolences. Yamuraiha would have found the situation funny, if it hadn't been so embarrassing.

She didn't realize till now, but apparently everyone just assumed that they were a couple. She didn't blame them, since they were just a guy and girl together… Alone. She faced palmed. All those guys she had wanted to date had probably thought that Sharrkan was her boyfriend. She wondered if he realized this too, and if bothered him just as much as it bothered her. The two of them dating has never happened, nor will it ever happen.

"Here."

Yamuraiha could smell something sweet and she brought her hand away from her face to see Sharrkan holding a bunch of broken roses out to her. It was the largest bouquet of flowers she had ever seen, it was also the ugliest. Many of the blue heads were hanging loosely by their stems, and she watched blue petals float gently to the ground collecting into a pile at her feet. She glanced behind Sharrkan at the husky vendor and saw him triumphantly waving a large stack of money in the air.

"He made me pay double for all the blue roses that I broke. Even though it wasn't my fault," he grumbled. "These are expensive, man. I think they were way overpriced." He complained to her.

"They have to be genetically engineered to be that way, so of course they're going to be a bit pricey." She informed him airily.

"Well take them, I don't want them. Aren't they your favorite anyways?"

She stared at him surprised. "How did you know that?" She asked him questioningly.

He shrugged, making more blue petals break off and flutter downwards. "It just seemed like something you would like. You were also poking your head around them when I came to find you." He tried handing her the bouquet.

Okay, so he is super observant. "I'm still mad at you," she informed him, refusing to take them from him.

"Then take these as a formal apology," he begged. "I thought girls like flowers."

"They like flowers that aren't in tatters," she sighed. "Fine I'll take them. But I still don't forgive you for what you've done," she growled. "I think you just didn't want to waste your money on all these flowers," she added nastily.

"Yeah, that too." He agreed with her.

Yamuraiha hugged the behemoth of flowers, gently taking it from Sharrkan. She suddenly felt overwhelmingly tired. "Can we go home now?" She pleaded.

"Fine."

The two made their way towards the palace in silence. Their earlier argument was still fresh in their minds, and it was like they were walking on eggs just waiting for one of them to crack. She felt silly about carrying a bouquet of roses that were falling apart that was almost as big as her. She could feel all the eyes of the other people curiously watching her. She obviously caught the attention of the vendors, since they were all directing their advertisements towards her. If she had bought such huge piece of worthless junk, then she should be willing to buy their worthless junk too right?

However one stand caught her attention. It was a jewelry stand, and she saw one particular necklace glint in the moonlight that threw her in a trance. She changed directions and headed towards the booth, to the vendor's delight and Sharrkan's annoyance.

"Hey, I thought you wanted to go home?" He asked her crossly.

"Just give me a minute!" She snapped and scurried over to the jewelry booth. She heard him sigh and his footsteps followed after her.

"Well hello there," The scrawny salesman with glasses greeted her. "Does the pretty lady want a pretty pair of earrings perhaps?" He motioned to the case of assorted earrings in front of him.

"I was actually wondering about that necklace over there." She pointed towards the necklace that she had laid her eyes on.

"Ah yes, a very fine necklace indeed." He pranced over to the necklace and took it off its hook then sauntered back and held up to Yamuraiha for a better look.

It wasn't as fancy as some of the other necklaces, but to her it was the most beautiful. It had strands of pink sea shells separated by tiny white pearls. A small conch shell was strung in the center. It reminded her of the shells she used to wear so much that she almost cried.

"Can I… Try it on?"

"Of course, of course." The salesman nodded eagerly.

Yamuraiha turned to Sharrkan shoving the roses into his arms. "Hold these," she instructed him. He only grunted in response.

She turned around and held her hair out of the the way so the vendor could wrap the necklace around her neck and fix the clasp together. He held a mirror up so she could see her reflection. When she saw how the necklace looked on her, she almost really did break into tears. It was almost like it was made for her. It even matched her dress perfectly. She couldn't wipe the smile off of her face.

"Oh it looks absolutely lovely on you!" The Salesman beamed at her. He turned to Sharrkan. "Wouldn't you say she looks pretty, lad?"

Yamuraiha was suddenly aware of his gaze on her. When she looked at him, he glanced away. She waited expectantly for his response. "Yeah, she looks pretty." Sharrkan muttered.

Her mouth dropped open. He hadn't just agreed with the guy; Sharrkan actually called her _pretty_! Out of all the things in the world he has called her, not once has he ever called her pretty.

"How much?" She asked the jeweler tearing her aghast gaze from the swordsman. When he informed her of the price, she almost gagged. "Are you sure its that much?" She asked him hastily.

The vendor smiled at her sympathetically. "I'm sorry, these are real seashells and pearls. Unfortunately they are very hard to come by. The price is not negotiable."

Yamuraiha tried to conceal her disappointment. She had spent most of her personal expenses for her magical experiments. "I'm sorry, I don't have the money for this." She made a move to unclasp the necklace.

"Wait," Sharrkan interrupted. "Here take these." He handed her back the roses and a couple of the blossoms fell off while doing so. He pulled out his wallet and rummaged through it.

"Hold on," she protested.

He looked at her with a few traces of irritability etching his faces. "What?"

"You can't just buy something that expensive for me!" She protested.

He rolled his eyes. "Watch me." And he handed the vendor the money without a second thought.

"Now there's a good fellow!" The man said while inhaling the scent of the money.

"Why did you do that? I didn't even ask!" She wailed. What was he doing?

"You didn't have to." Sharrkan smirked at her. "You were so upset earlier, and I could tell that necklace made you happy. Have I ever told you that I like you more when you're happy than when you're yelling at me?"

"You did this, just to make me happy?" She couldn't believe her own ears.

He ran a hand through his hair. "Well, I guess you could put it that way."

All the earlier resentment she held for him vanished with the wind. And suddenly, Yamuraiha started appreciating him more than she ever had in her life. She found herself admiring the way his white hair shined in the moonlight. How his perfectly structured face framed his eyes that twinkled like the stars. How the torches made his bronze skin glow against the darkness. Had he always been this... Attractive? She shook her head.

"You have really burned a hole through my wallet tonight. A simple thanks is all I'm asking for," he said impatiently.

"Thank you… Sharrkan. This is one of the nicest things anyone has ever done for me," She told him. "This is probably the first nice thing you've ever done for me," she added teasingly.

"Nonsense," he chuckled. "I do lots of nice things for you." He pressed his hand in the small of her back in the direction of Sinbad's palace. "Come on. You've had a long night. Let's get you home."

She nodded and yawned as if to confirm his statement. She was exhausted and she even felt strangely light-headed. Her bed sounded extremely inviting to her right now. One thing she hated about her condition, was how weak she became when she was tired. It was the reason why she slept for so long each day. She found herself struggling up the steps of the city.

Yamuraiha stumbled on one of the steps, and she felt Sharrkan's strong hands steady her. "Whoa, there." He said. Suddenly she felt herself being scooped up into his arms. "You really do need to eat a fried octopus or two," he chuckled. "You're so light. I thought you would be flabbier than this."

"Idiot," she murmured. But she was too tired to protest, and she hugged her broken roses tighter. She could feel him secretly carry her passed the guards and through the corridors. The next thing she knew, she was being gently placed in her bed. She felt him take the roses from her arms and she pulled her covers around to envelop her. "Good night, Sharrkan."

She heard him set the roses on her desk and walk to the door and open it. "Good night… Yamuraiha," he murmured. Then he shut the door behind him.


	4. Breaking Walls

Yamuraiha heard voices within her slumber. Roused from her sleep, she tried to tune into what they were saying. Through her groggy mind, she could pick out at least three people that were speaking to each other.

"Where do you think they came from?" A high pitched voice queried. Yamuraiha guessed the voice belonged to Pisti.

"I don't know. I didn't notice them when I came in earlier, but they were definitely not there yesterday." The smooth voice must belong to Spartos. Definitely Spartos.

"Yeah, they weren't there the last time I was in here either." Pisti agreed. "Who do you think gave them to her, Masrur?"

A grunt. "How would I know? Who ever it was obviously has poor delivery services. I've never seen such a beaten up bouquet of roses before," Masrur droned.

Yamuraiha's eyes shot open. They were talking about her roses from last night! Sharrkan didn't think to put them somewhere out of sight. This could give them away. He left her alone to make up an excuse to hide the fact she had broken her doctor's orders, the idiot.

"Who cares if they're ugly? It's the thought that counts right?" Pisti chimed.

Yamuraiha coughed. She felt their eyes turn on her.

"Oh, Yamu you're awake!" Spartos sounded pleasantly surprised.

"Good morning," Masrur greeted her. Based how the sun was lighting her bedroom, she could tell that it was around ten in the morning. She was surprised that she didn't sleep past noon since she had spent her busy night at the festival.

She felt her bed bounce a little when Pisti leapt on top of it. "Look what a mysterious person left for you!" She exclaimed pointing at the drooping flowers sitting on top of her desk.

Yamuraiha curved her head to look at the other three and her roses. Spartos was leaning against the wall nearest to her bed smiling down at her. Masrur was curiously carrying a large tray piled with food. She tried her best to act surprised when she stole a glimpse of the blue roses.

"Oh what a nice surprise. Though they're a bit sorry looking," she said breezily.

Pisti danced over to sit next to Yamuraiha. "Do you know who gave them to you?" She asked her excitedly.

She sat up from lying down, the covers fell down around her. Her head gave a sharp pang, but she ignored it. "I have absolutely no idea," she lied.

"Where and when did you get that?" Pisti's eyes grew the size of softballs. She pointed at the necklace hanging around Yamuraiha's neck.

Yamuraiha's hand crept up instinctively to grasp her necklace protectively. "What, this?" She asked in voice that she tried to make sound nonchalant as possible. "This is just an old necklace that I've had for years."

Pisti arched an eyebrow at her. "I've never seen it before."

"That's because I've never really worn it until now," she tried to explain.

"What's with the nice dress, Yamu? You look like you're going out somewhere." Spartos narrowed his eyes at her. They all knew that she was on bedrest; leaving the palace was strictly forbidden to her.

She silently cursed. She didn't have a chance to change back into her sleeping robes last night. "I just felt like dressing up in something nice," she said exasperated.

"And then went to bed?" Masrur asked with a hint of irony.

The three of them shared suspicious looks with each other. The mysterious roses, the necklace, and the pretty dress? It was all a little too peculiar. Yamuraiha was desperate for a change in subject. She was afraid that they would guess that she had secretly left on a date. Of course she had secretly left the palace grounds with Sharrkan, but it was not a date.

"What are the three of you doing in here anyways?" She asked in attempt to divert their attention away from her.

"Oh yeah!" Pisti flew off the bed and started tugging on Masrur's wrist with one hand and pointing at the tray full of food with the other. "We're going to have a picnic in your room!" She informed Yamuraiha excitedly.

Spartos nodded. "It was Pisti's idea."

"I had nothing better to do," Masrur said. "It didn't sound like such bad idea either." They all gazed at her expectantly.

"Oh okay," she consented. However she wasn't in the mood to eat. Her friends must have sensed her lack of enthusiasm because they shared worried glances.

"We brought you Baked Aubergine! One of your favorites right?" Pisti asked her with a bit of desperation in her voice.

She didn't say anything.

"Here." Masrur handed Yamuraiha a heaping plate full of steaming eggplant. She took it from him apprehensively. She could smell the sizzling garlic wafting in the air. The fresh leeks topping the eggplant looked bright green and grilled to perfection. The cherry tomatoes and figs were plump from ripeness and looked incredibly juicy. And the melted cheese? Looked like it would just melt in your mouth. It was the most tantalizing dish of Aubergine she had ever seen. She felt the sudden urge to puke.

"I don't think I can eat this," she gagged trying to hand it back to Masrur. He held the tray back from her while shaking his head from side to side.

"Please eat, Yamu." Pisti begged her. "You hardly eat anything these days."

"When was the last time you even ate?" Spartos asked her with concern.

"Yesterday," she answered defensively. Well that was only _partly_ true. The only thing she had consumed the day before was the coconut milk Sharrkan had won in the palm tree climbing contest.

"You're lying," Masrur growled.

Yamuraiha blinked at him in surprise. "What? No I'm not."

"We know you're lying because all the meals we brought to you yesterday you didn't even touch," Spartos explained to her in exasperation.

Pisti took Yamuraiha's spoon and shoveled some Aubergine on top of it. "Honestly," she said losing her patience. "You would think Yamu was a little child when it comes to eating. Am I going to have to spoon feed you?" She motioned to fit the spoon into Yamuraiha's mouth, but the stubborn eater turned her head to the side. Pisti sighed in frustration.

Masrur silently handed the tray to Spartos and cracked his knuckles. "Of course there is always force feeding." He took a step closer to the bed.

"Alright, alright. I'll- I'll try…" Yamuraiha gritted her teeth while taking the spoon from Pisti. She knew they were being oppressive only because they cared too much. She had a staring contest with the food on the spoon for a second. She could feel her friends lean forward in anticipation while holding their breath. When she finally took a bite, a collective sigh of relief could be heard around the room.

The three generals watched the woman slowly eat her meal in watchful silence. Once Pisti, Spartos, and Masrur were sure that Yamuraiha would continue to eat, they dug into their own meals while chatting cheerfully. They still kept an eye or two on her to make sure she didn't stop until all the food was gone.

Yamuraiha tried to act pleasant, but she could hardly stomach the Aubergine. The taste was fine, in fact it was probably the most flavorful meal she ever had. She didn't know why, but she just did not want to eat. She only joined in the conversation when she had to, and each mouthful made her gag. When she had almost finished the last of her meal, she felt her body burn and break into a cold shaky sweat.

"Yamu, are you okay? You're looking a bit green…" Spartos observed. He and the others were staring at her with anxious glances.

Yamuraiha quietly excused herself and flew out of her bed, startling the others. Food and drink spilled into her sheets despite the other's desperate attempts to stop the spilling. She dashed over to her bathroom covering her mouth with one of her hands. She slammed the door with her other free hand.

"Yamu? What's wrong?" She heard a worried muffled voice ask her behind the door.

She grabbed the sides of her toilet bowl and retched in response. She heard the door moan open to her embarrassment. She could sense the three of them standing in the doorway. She tried to speak after she was done regurgitating. "I don't feel well," she croaked. Well that was an understatement. She gripped the toilet tighter as she dry heaved.

"We know you're not well," she heard Pisti sigh in defeat.

Yamuraiha felt a large comforting hand placed on her shoulder and felt a towel being handed to her. She took it gratefully and used it to wipe her mouth. The toilet seemed to flush on its own. She felt her entire body ache, and she shakily stood to her feet. She felt Masrur support her by gripping her elbow.

"Thanks," she rasped. She faced the other two.

Spartos looked a little green himself. "I'll go find someone to change your bed sheets," he offered hastily. He left the room without a second glance.

"We need to take you to the doctors," Pisti said to Yamuraiha, and she didn't protest.

The trip to the infirmary was a slow and hard one. Yamuraiha used the towel to cover her mouth whenever she felt the urge to vomit again. Masrur offered to carry her, but she had enough of being carried lately. So he just used his hands to steady her as she stubbornly made her way to the clinic. Pisti had ran ahead to inform the doctors of her arrival.

When she finally made it, nurses lead her to cot where she could lie down. The cot was placed next to a bathroom so Yamuraiha could reach the toilet if she needed to. A bucket was placed next to her as a precaution. Blankets were placed on top of her, but she kept tossing them on and off between her burning fever and her cold sweat. She drifted into an uncomfortable sleep, only waking to adjust her blankets.

Yamuraiha suddenly awoke in a coughing fit, making bile rise in her throat. The nausea from earlier had subsided, and she craved a drink of water. She strained to get up but to her alarm she was to weak to prop herself up. She struggled against the blankets, and she began to panic. She felt a strong hand press on her shoulder to calm her squirming. Suddenly she was aware of her surroundings. She was back in her own bed with fresh sheets. They smelled like lemon soap. She looked down at herself with blurred vision and noticed that she was wearing a new white long-sleeved robe. She was confused to what was happening to her, and her throat felt extremely dry.

"Water," she begged scratchily. The hand left her and she found herself missing the warmth it gave her. Suddenly she felt a glass being pressed to her lips and a hand tilting her head so the water could trickle into her mouth. It was the most refreshing drink she ever had in her lifetime. She felt the glass tilt upwards and the last drops of water dribbled down her throat and the hand gently resting her head against the pillow again. The hand brushed strands of hair out of her face. She drifted back into sleep.

This was how things were for Solomon knows how long. Yamuraiha would feel a cold wet washcloth being placed on her forehead. A spoon would force warm mushy food down her throat. A hand would hold hers soothingly; Sometimes smooth and soft other times rough and calloused. Occasionally she could hear urgent whispers within the edges of her sleep. One time she thought she heard a woman singing to her while stroking her face. She imagined that was something her own mother would have done for her if she were here.

Her dreams were very strange. They weren't like her usual nightmares thank Solomon, but they were very peculiar. In one dream she was standing on hill overlooking a plantation. She could see people working in the fields, but she saw cats and dogs farming alongside them as well. She watched as a cat used its paws to pick tomatoes. She placed them into a crate that was already brimming to the top. A dog came by and dropped an empty one beside the cat and picked up the full one and carried it off. He handed it to a human who then placed it into a wheelbarrow and carted it off. The way they worked together was uncanny.

Another dream she had was completely different. She saw a deer wandering in a sandy desert. She could see that it was a female, and she appeared to be lost. The doe wandered aimlessly around the sand dunes, crying and braying for something she lost. Yamuraiha felt her heart squeeze. She longed to help the lost animal, but there wasn't anything she could do. Suddenly, hundreds of snakes crawled out from underneath the golden sand, but they didn't try to hurt the doe. They stopped in front of her and then bowed down to her. Then the sky darkened, and the deer turned her head away as one enormous snake swallowed the sun whole. These dreams continued on for what seemed like forever until one day she woke up.

Yamuraiha's eyes fluttered open. It was nighttime but a light on her nightstand was on. She could feel a moist cloth was draped over her forehead. She pulled it off and stared at it before setting it on her night stand. Then she noticed her roses sitting on her desk. All the bad parts of the stems and petals were pruned off, and the rest of it was placed in a clear vase full of water. They didn't look quite so droopy anymore.

She heard her door creak open. She weakly craned her neck to see who was entering. Her eyes scanned the familiar light robes and sandals. The gold chain and white hair. It was Sharrkan, and he was staring at her with a face full of shock. Then his gaping mouth formed into a smirk

"Welcome back to the world of the living," he chuckled. He then entered the room carrying a wooden bowl full of what looked like steaming water.

Yamuraiha stared after him, frowning. "What happened?" She asked. Her voice cracked like she hadn't spoken in a very long time.

He placed the bowl of water on her desk. He was facing away from her dipping more white washcloths into the warm water. She could feel his tension in the air so thick she could cut it with a knife.

"Pisti told me that you, Spartos, and Masrur were having some kind of picnic," he began slowly. "They tried to have you eat-"

"More like force feed me," she muttered remembering the event.

"-and then you went and threw it all up in the bathroom. After that you said you weren't feeling well, and so they took you to the infirmary where you slipped into unconsciousness." She heard water splashing and dripping as he wrung the cloths out. He was picking his words carefully.

"The doctors came to the conclusion that you had become ill with some strain of the flu," he went on.

"The stomach flu?" She asked.

He shook his head, making his chains jingle. "No, just the flu. They don't know why you vomited, and why you won't eat." He paused before murmuring, "None of us do."

She felt something rise within her, some kind of burning sensation. "So? How long was I out for?" He was sure taking his time with those stupid cloths.

"Oh, about a week and half I think. Maybe two." He twisted more cloths.

"And?"

"And what?" He asked her carefully.

"Did I almost die?" She sneered. "Again?"

He turned around and gave her sympathetic smile. She fought the urge to throw a lamp at him.

"We honestly don't know what would've happened," he told her. He grabbed a couple damp washcloths and approached her slowly. She could almost see how it pained him to smile at her like that. It was just so _unnatural _for him to behave this way.

"But don't worry," he said too gently. He leaned down to place a warm washcloth on her forehead. "Sinbad said that you'll be just fine."

Yamuraiha pushed his hands away. "Sharrkan," she said as sweetly as possible.

He arched an eyebrow. "What?"

"I'm really craving something watery and sweet. Would you bring me some… Some Watermelon?" She asked him with a fake smile.

He ran a hand through his hair. "A watermelon?"

She nodded. "Yes a watermelon. Will you get me one? _Now_?" She begged him with an edge to her voice.

He shrugged and dropped the washcloth back into the wooden bowl. "I'll go see if we have any on hand…" He trailed off and made his way back out the door.

Once he was gone, Yamuraiha pushed against the mattress in an attempt to sit up. The flu had left her sore and weak. She struggled immensly, but she was not going to give up. With one final push, she was able to throw herself in a sitting position. Panting, she pushed her covers off of her and swung her legs down. She gripped a nearby chair for support, and she strained to pull herself up. Sides heaving, she found herself standing. She dared to take a step, and she almost fell. Almost, but she didn't and so she kept dragging her feet across the floor. She found the more she walked the easier it became for her. She grabbed her dresser and propelled herself off of it for an extra boost of speed. She could do this!

It seemed like it had taken hours but she finally reached the door. She grabbed the handle and turned it with difficulty. She grunted as she used her body weight to push the door open. She smiled triumphantly to herself once she was in the hallway, but she hadn't reached her destination yet. She had to hurry, and she swayed down the hall as quickly as she could.

"What are you doing?"

Yamuraiha gasped and turned around. Sharrkan was carrying a large melon a ways down the hall and she could see him scowling from where she stood. She scampered away.

"I'm taking a bath and you can't stop me!" She yelled at him. Afraid that he would chase her down and send her back to her room, she tried to run. To her own surprise he didn't go after her. He just sighed and muttered something under his breath.

She reached the baths without a hitch. She opened the door jubilantly and closed it behind her. Relief swarmed over. She was finally alone. Probably for the first time since that last time she was here. She felt tears streaming down her cheeks as she undressed herself. Once she shakily dropped her body in the steamy water, she let it all out.

The sadness, the fear, the anger, the hurt. All of it came out in the form of sobs, one wave after another. She rocked herself, trying to calm her emotions in vain. Her cries that bubbled out of her echoed across the entire room. She briefly wondered if she was waking the entire palace up, but at the moment she didn't care. She felt like her insides were being torn apart. The ache of her recent illness was still draped over her like a dark cloud. She was suffering from a pain, a mental and physical pain that no one but her could understand. She was truly and utterly alone.

Eventually her bawling slowed to stop. Her sniffles were the only evidence that she had ever cried. She leaned her head against the railing of the stairs and watched the water ripple around her. She listened to the gentle sounds of the waves lap against the walls of the bath. It was therapeutic to her since it helped her calm down. She began washing herself, rinsing away every little bit of grime that was stuck to her for over a week. She felt physically better, but her mind was a complete ball of mush.

Yamuraiha held the railing tightly as she heaved herself out of the water. She was reaching for a towel hanging on the hook when she felt her feet slip out from under her. With a yelp she smacked her head against the railing with a 'ding' and the rest of her body banged against the hard steps of the bath. She groaned. Half of her body was still in the water while the other half was lying on the cold hard ground.

She heard the doorknob rattle and the door opened just a smudge. "Everything alright in there?" Sharrkan asked.

Yamuraiha cursed. She had forgotten to lock the door again! "Don't come in here!" She commanded in a panicky voice. When she saw that the door was opening even more, she climbed back into the bath and curled into the fetal position with her back facing the entrance. She hugged her knees, praying that her legs and feet would give her the cover she needed.

She heard his footsteps enter the room. "Get out! Get out!" She screeched, longing for something to throw at him.

"Relax, I'm not going to do anything weird or lecherous. Just let me help you, idiot."

"No no, I'm perfectly fine. Just give me a minute! Please just let me help myself!" She begged him.

"You're obviously _not_ fine. I promise I won't look, so just shut up and let me help you. I think you've helped yourself enough for tonight," he growled at her. She flinched at the tone of voice he was using with her. The forced gentle tone he had spoken to her with before had completely vanished.

She heard him grab the towel she was reaching for earlier. When she felt his hands try to wrap it around her, she dared to use one of her hands to push him away while the other one still hugged her legs.

"I don't need your _kindness_," she hissed. "I can tell that you're just acting like everything is okay. I can tell that you're just pretending to be nice to me. It's fake and I hate it. Everything you did for me at the festival was just act wasn't it?" She whimpered, but she wasn't done with her tirade just yet. "You're not nice to me, and I'm not nice to you. So just stop acting like everything is fine and dandy! Everything is _not_ okay when we all perfectly know that I'm dying. I know that I only have less than a year to live. So do me a favor and just stop. Just stop trying for Solomon's sake!"

She heard him sigh and run a hand through his hair as he tried to control his temper. "Listen to me Yamuraiha," Sharrkan snarled. "I get that we hardly ever get along, and I honestly don't care if that changes between us or not. But everything I did for you at the festival wasn't an act, and I'm not acting now. So stop being arrogant and I'll stop being an idiot. Just let me help you just this once and we can forget that it ever even happened, okay?"

"Fine!" She snapped. She knew that she wasn't going to win this fight. She felt the towel being wrapped around her carefully so it wouldn't get wet. She hastily snatched the ends and pulled them around her tighter. She felt his hands take hold of her elbows as she stood up. She readjusted the towel so it covered her body more properly. When she looked at him, she was surprised to find that he was averting his eyes. "Thanks," she grunted.

Sharrkan didn't say anything while he lead Yamuraiha out of the bath. She felt lightheaded.

"Didn't you bring clean clothes?" He asked her when they reached the door.

She shook her head. "I forgot to."

"You really are an idiot," he decided.

She was about to protest when she felt him slide off his outer robes and wrap those around her too. He picked up her robes on the floor and shoved them into her arms.

"Let's get you back to your room." He told her, and she nodded in response.

He continued to support her tiny frame against his own muscular one, and Yamuraiha felt her skin flush. Though she didn't know why. When they reached her room, he let go of her arms.

"Go ahead and get dressed," he told her. "I'll wait out here. Tell me when you're ready."

"Okay." She didn't care to know what he was up to. She felt like she was floating on a far away cloud.

Yamuraiha placed everything she had on her in her dirty clothes bin. She opened her dresser and found a comfortable light blue nightgown to wear. She put it on without any thoughts running through her mind and she picked up Sharrkan's tunic from the floor. It was soaked full of water from her hair, so she hung it on her chair for it to dry.

"I'm good now," she found herself saying.

Sharrkan entered her room and then pointed at her bed. "Sit," he instructed her.

She gave him a suspicious look but did as she was told and sat on the foot of her bed. She watched him as he grabbed her hairbrush off of her dresser and sat down next to her. He pulled her long blue hair all to his side, and began brushing through it. He was surprisingly very good at it, starting at the tips with smaller strokes and then slowly working his way up to her roots. His strokes were smooth and not jerky as she expected him to be. His gentleness surprised her.

"How do you know how to brush long hair so well?" She asked him. She felt him hesitate in his brushing. Then he slowly continued his gentle stroking.

"My mother and I," he began slowly. "Were very close when I was younger."

Yamuraiha held her breath. There he goes talking about his past again! This time it was on a much more personal level than before. She had never heard Sharrkan say anything about his mother to anyone. She wondered if she was the first person he was sharing this with.

"She was the most beautiful woman to me, and she had long hair just like you," he told her. "I loved to touch it, and so she taught me how to brush her hair so that I could do it for her."

Yamuraiha had a hard time picturing a little boy Sharrkan brushing his mother's hair. "I was thinking that you learned it from being around harlots too much," she confessed.

She heard him snort. "I wouldn't touch their hair. It's not pretty enough."

She took silent note of him brushing her hair. "Are you saying that you think my hair is pretty?" She asked him innocently.

The bed lurched as he shrugged. "It's softer than I thought it would be…" Is all he says, and Yamuraiha blushes.

It was silent before either of them speak again, but it wasn't awkward at all. Sharrkan's rhythmic brushes were making Yamuraiha feel sleepy. "Can you tell me what she was like? You're mother I mean…" She asks him reverently.

This time he doesn't hesitate, as if he was dying to share his memories of his mother with someone. "She was one of the most joyous people you could ever meet. She had this laugh that could just fill an entire room and it was contagious. She was so energetic and fun-loving. Did you know that she was the one that taught me how to climb a palm tree?" The tangles were all out of her hair by now, but he didn't stop brushing and she didn't complain.

"She was?" She giggled. She could only imagine.

"I only learn from the best," he bragged. "One time she let me throw pheasant eggs at Amrakan just because I wanted to, and she thought that it would be funny."

"She let you do that? Did she not care very much for your brother then?" Yamuraiha felt him stiffen next to her. The big brother subject must be a touchy one to avoid.

"No she loved both of us very much. That was just her personality. Like one time she gave me a swirly just because she thought I deserved it."

She was beginning to wonder if Sharrkan's mother was more abusive than what he was letting on. "And that was okay?"

"Sure it was. I probably _did_ deserve it and she washed my hair out afterwards. We would just laugh those kinds of things off and move on. Anything bad that she did to us she would override with even more love."

Yamuraiha sighed. "She sounds wonderful."

"She was. Of course she had a gentle side to her, where she would just hug us tight for no reason at all. Or when she would stay up and hold your hand if one of us was sick." He sighed. "I haven't seen her since I was a kid. She fought the hardest against my banishment, and I don't even know if she is alive…" He abruptly stopped brushing her blue tresses. "You can't tell anybody about this, okay? You're the first person I ever shared this with."

She looked at with round blue eyes. He looked so miserable at the moment that she had to resist the urge to brush her hand across his lips. "Why did you even tell me this?" She asked him in a small voice.

He was quiet, as if he was asking himself the same question. "I don't know," he said at last. "I just feel like I can trust you since you understand what it is like to have a special bond with a parent and then to have them be taken away from you forever."

She nodded. He was talking about her late adoptive father, Mogamett. He had passed away a while ago, but the ache of his death was still buried deep in her heart. She shakily stretched out her arm and touched his arm in solace. He looked at her pale hand in bewilderment. She herself shocked herself by her own action. It was like her hand moved on its own. It was so strange for the both of them to reminisce together like this. His skin felt warm under her touch. "I'm sorry."

He moved away from under her hand and stood up and placed the brush back on top of her dresser before moving to stand in front of her window. "You should probably get some sleep," he said distantly.

"Oh, okay." Though she didn't feel like she could fall asleep yet, she crawled under her blankets anyways. She could sense that he was not in the mood to talk to her anymore. "Thanks, Sharrkan… For everything." The words felt foreign on her tongue, but she meant every word. She turned her lamp off.

Sharrkan didn't seem to hear her. He just started out her window into the distance as if he could see some faraway distant land.


	5. Building Bridges

It has been three days since Yamuraiha had awoken from her sickness induced sleep, and her recovery has been extremely speedily to the welcome surprise of everyone. The doctors explained to her that because her body was in an exceptionally weakened state, it had been easy for the flu to take over her. Fortunately they had found a way to crush their medicine into a powder they mixed into her food and gave it to her while she was sleep. Therefore she got something to eat while getting her medicine at the same time, killing two birds with one stone. The sickness itself wasn't related to her magoi condition, and so it wasn't as life threatening as everyone feared. However the question was, how did she catch the flu in the first place? Everyone who visited her were all in good health, so she had to have been some place where germs could have been easily passed around.

"Maybe someone carried it on them from outside the palace and I was lucky enough to catch it," Yamuraiha evaded when questioned if she had broken orders and left the palace. She knew she had probably caught the flu from the night of the festival since there were countless people milling around her. Of course she wouldn't tell the truth just yet, because then they would want _all _the details. There were many tidbits of that night that she didn't want to share with anyone. She could only pray that the doctors would buy her excuse.

Yamuraiha pulled the green blanket draped around her shoulders tighter. It was around midday, but the warm weather in Sindria finally broke into a cold front and the sky was covered in a curtain of rain clouds. She watched a steady drizzle of rain fall from the sky into the courtyard from the covered balcony of the palace. She sat next to Hinahoho on the bench, and she could feel it almost buckle underneath his weight. She had to beg him to go outside and see the rain, and he finally consented when she said that she would stay out of it and keep dry. They watched in peaceful silence as they watched his children kick a ball around the courtyard. The rain didn't seem to bother them, in fact it seemed to invigorate them as they shrieked and ran around.

Yamuraiha inhaled the wet earthy scent with pleasure. She had always loved the rain, especially the smell of it. "It feels great to get some fresh air again," she sighed. "Your kids seem to be enjoying themselves," she added with a chuckle.

"They're like a bunch of dogs when it comes to water. They even smell like a wet dog after too," he chuckled.

Yamuraiha laughed too. She watched as one of the younger one's slipped on the wet grass and fell onto his back. His brothers and sisters roared with laughter, and he grinned. Yamuraiha was giggling to herself, when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye.

"What's he doing, training in the rain like that," she muttered. "He's just going to hurt himself."

Hinahoho followed her gaze. "Perhaps Sharrkan wants to keep his skills sharp even in bad weather," he guessed. Though he was frowning.

In a secluded part of the courtyard away from the children, Sharrkan was swinging his obsidian sword around with much ease and experience he's known for, even in the rain. However the expression on his face was filled with so much anger, that Yamuraiha could almost believe that he was fighting against an invisible enemy. He slashed his sword like a mad man.

"Is he going to be okay?" She asked him warily.

"I don't know," Hinahoho sighed. "He's been acting a bit strange lately."

Yamuraiha looked at him. She hadn't been expecting this change of topic. "You've just barely noticed that he's strange?" She asked sarcastically, although she knew what he meant.

Hinahoho chuckled at her remark. "Yes he is truly a peculiar one. I never know what's running through that mind of his."

"You can say that again!"

He gave her sidelong glance. "But I mean he's… Been acting differently."

"How so?" she asked him. So she wasn't the only one who noticed Sharrkan's strange behaviour.

Hinahoho shifted uncomfortably on the bench, making Yamuraiha bounce. "It was a huge wake up call for everyone when Sin found you after… The accident," he began carefully. Why did every conversation she had eventually come back to this? "It's been difficult for everyone, Yamu. But I think it has been especially hard on Sharrkan."

"I didn't think he would care," she grumbled darkly.

"Oh he cares. That boy may act like he only thinks of himself, but in reality he would die for each and everyone of us here."

She sighed. "I suppose that's true." Hadn't she done the very same thing?

"However…" He trailed off. He was watching the swordsman attack the air in vain again, and Yamuraiha watched him as well. "I know that he hasn't visited any of the brothels in months, which is very uncharacteristic of him."

She nodded. "I asked him about that, and he said it was because of his shift that he hasn't been there lately." She explained to him.

"No, that's not it." Hinahoho said flatly. One of his children shrieked with laughter, but it sounded very distant to her.

"What do you mean?" She asked dubiously.

"He has other times during the day he can go, and yet he chooses not to."

"Oh," was all she said. She hadn't even considered that until Hinahoho mentioned it.

"And I haven't seen him so much as look at alcohol," he added with a hint of surprise in his voice. It was like he couldn't even believe his own words.

Yamuraiha furrowed her brows. "Well now that's strange," she commented. "What's with him?" She asked the gigantic man.

He shrugged. "Like I said, I have no idea what he's thinking. But…" He paused, she guessed he was trying to put his thoughts together into the form of words. "I've watched all of you grow up from the little kids that you were, to who you are now." He began. "Don't tell him I said this, but even though he calls himself a grown man, he is still acts like a little cocky fifteen year old."

Yamuraiha snorted with laughter. Her thoughts exactly!

"But," he paused and scratched his head. "I suppose this," he motioned to the air in front of him. "Has changed him a little. I guess what I'm trying to say is…" He let out a heavy sigh. He almost sounded a little sad. "Sharrkan is finally starting to grow up."

Yamuraiha didn't say anything as she watched the subject of their conversation fight the rain. "He's different…" Was all she said after a while.

Suddenly, Sharrkan skidded to stop in the mud. He lifted his sword to his gaze and he glared at it like it had been his real enemy all along.

"Now what is he up to?" She asked, but she watched with an open mouth as he chucked it at a stone wall with all his might.

_CLANG!_

Yamuraiha and Hinahoho gaped at him in stunned silence. Even the children stopped their game to stare at him in shock. She had never, in all the years she had ever known Sharrkan, seen him treat his sword that way. He loved it more than he loved himself, which was saying a lot.

She could see his sides heave, and he was shaking in anger. His fists curled as he looked up at the sky. He looked like he was having a heated argument with the dark gray clouds. Then his facial features relaxed, and he only stared at the sky with a sorrowful expression for what seemed like hours. He didn't seem to notice the others in the courtyard watching his every move. He shook his head and then stalked over to his sword lying on the wet ground. He stooped over it at then picked it up while gently murmuring something to it. Yamuraiha imagined him apologizing to his sword like a parent would to a child. He began to wipe the mud off the blade with his robes, even though he was already covered in mud splatters from head to toe. He sheathed his sword and stood up without even glancing at the others. He left the courtyard through one of the many doorways while wringing water out of his soggy white hair. He was headed in to bathe no doubt.

Yamuraiha stared after him with unblinking eyes. She felt Hinahoho shift beside her, and it took her a moment to realize that he had said something to her.

"I'm sorry what did you say?" she apologized to him without shifting her gaze.

"I said that he really is different," he grunted.

The children went back to playing their game of kickball.

Yamuraiha couldn't get the image of Sharrkan standing in the rain out of her mind for the rest of her day. She thought about mentioning it to Pisti at dinner in her room that night since she was pretty close to Sharrkan. Yamuraiha was hoping that her small friend would have an idea to why he acted the way he did, but she decided not to say anything.

"You're awfully quiet tonight, Yamu." Pisti commented. She looked at her with big brown eyes.

"I suppose, I'm just… Tired." It wasn't a lie either. Another nightmare had savaged Yamuraiha's sleep last night.

"Don't you want more of your curried stew?" Pisti asked her. She couldn't hide the desperation out of her voice from the older woman.

Yamuraiha looked down into her own steaming bowl. She hadn't even eaten half of it, and she was just swirling the liquid around with her spoon. Her appetite still hadn't returned to her yet. She decided that she would ask him about it herself tonight. Hopefully Sharrkan would open himself up to her like he did a couple nights ago.

She heard Pisti sigh in defeat. "It's okay," she said to her gently. "I won't push you to eat like last time…"

Yamuraiha looked at her sympathetically. "You don't need to feel guilty about that," she told the blonde matter of factly. "I was being too stubborn. I'm sorry for the way I acted."

Pisti waved her hand in the air. "Don't be," she declared.

"I wish Spartos and Masrur were here so I could apologize to them as well," Yamuraiha sighed.

"I don't think they want to hear an apology from you either. They understand how you feel."

'_No they don't,'_ she thought. Then something occurred to her. "Where are those two anyways?" She asked. "I haven't seen them around since then."

Pisti shrugged. "Who knows? They'll show up eventually." She looked just as mystified as Yamuraiha. "Maybe Sin has their hands tied up in work too like Ja'far," she giggled.

"Perhaps." Ja'far has been in his office for what seemed like days and he hasn't been out since. Sometimes Yamuraiha worried about him probably more than she should, but he secretly seemed to enjoy his work. She couldn't understand why Ja'far loved working as much as he did, she wondered how he even got enough sleep. She wonders if he had some how found a way to sleep while working.

Yamuraiha was brought out of her musings when Pisti put her now empty bowl on the tray she brought with her with a 'clank.' Yamuraiha put her own bowl full of stew on there as well. They continued to talk cheerfully about their day, until it was time for Pisti to leave. Her room grew quiet the moment Pisti left. She listened to the steady drumming of the rain as it continued to storm outside. She sat down on her bed and watched for any signs of the door opening. Sharrkan should be coming in soon. She was still meaning to ask him about what happened when he was training earlier. The minutes seemed to continuously tick by. Her room slowly grew darker, and her eyelids felt heavier. _'He's late.' _She rested her head without tucking herself inside her covers, and she drifted into sleep.

Her nightmares came back to her at once, this time more vivid than ever before. It started the way they usually began: Yamuraiha was standing alone in an empty street within the Sindrian capital city. Her blood froze to ice and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she watched in horror as the magical barrier melted into thick jelly like globs. The gelatinous blobs fell from the sky and rained down on the city she so dearly loved, and everything the drops of magic touched burst into flames. Terrified screams sounded from every corner of the city. Yamuraiha felt her heart being crushed. _'No, no, no! The barrier was supposed to _protect_ the people not hurt them!_

Yamuraiha sprinted with bare feet down the cutting edges of the cobblestone street. She could hear agonized moans and tormented crying drifting through the arid breeze from the alley nearest to her. The scorching air was filled with hovering sparks that seared her lungs as the fires grew ever larger and consumed the city. Suddenly the walls of a nearby building collapsed on top of her. With all her might she pushed against the burning ground as she leapt out of the crashing debris. She howled in agony as a stone fell on top of her ankle, and she tumbled to the ground in a heap and banged her head onto the ground. Everything was out of focus, she was seeing double and the only thing she was aware of was the burning in her ankle. She coughed as she inhaled dust and smoke. Her ears were ringing when she sat up, and she noticed blood was dripping off of her cut up body and staining the ground. She didn't care though; she could still hear those muffled cries beyond the rubble.

With hidden strength Yamuraiha pushed the stone crushing her ankle off of her. She grinded her teeth as she did so, and once it was removed she noticed her foot was sticking out in an awkward angle. She found a few pieces of wood in the debris around her, and she stuck a smaller one in her mouth as she grasped her foot with both of her hands. The little knowledge she knew about first aid came in handy as she wrenched her foot back into place. The wood between her teeth splintered and she let out another scream. Once the blackness of the pain left her eyesight, she gripped the edge of her dress with shaky fingers and teared a long strip of the purple fabric off. Wheezing, she used the remaining pieces of word and torn strip of cloth to create a makeshift splint. She had to hurry now, the wailing was starting to drift away. She stood unsteadily to her feet.

The pile of rubble deemed to be more immense than Yamuraiha anticipated. It barred her way to the cries of the hurt people, and so she picked her way through the heap as carefully as she could with her hurt ankle. Her hands blistered each time she touched a sizzling stone block, and tears stung her eyes from the pain and the smoke. The scent of the air was filled with the acrid stench of burning buildings and… Flesh. She bit her lip as she finally pushed a large piece of charred wood out of her way. Her hands were drenched from blood from her blisters and shards of glass that had sliced her. She ripped more of her dress to make bandages for her hands as she heavily limped her way down the dark alley way. Even though she could hear the terrified cries of people around her, there wasn't a soul insight. The fact was incredibly eerie, and the cries she had heard before were no where to be seen or heard. All that was left in the alley was fresh dragging marks of blood that continued down the alley. She used her teeth to fasten one end of the remaining bandages for her hands. She had no other choice but to limp forward and follow the trail of blood.

Yamuraiha felt the ground shake as more buildings continued to tumble down within the city. She wondered frantically where Sinbad and the other generals were. They were nowhere insight, and for a fleeting moment she began to wonder if they were lying around somewhere dead. She shook her head. If she was still alive, then they all must be alive too. She panted as she limped in the heat, and her wounds burned as her sweat dripped into them. She leaned against any support that she could find that was still stable and not in flames. Then, she heard someone off to her right in an opening let out a grief-stricken wail. She peered around the corner, and to her dismay she spotted Drakon.

Drakon was cradling a lifeless heap in his arms. He himself was cut and bleeding even through his armor like scales. His left eye was swollen shut, but that didn't stop his tears from flowing. Yamuraiha gasped in shock and heartbreak when she saw the wavy brown curls float around them in a pool of blood. Her once creamy skin had turned a sickly shade of green, and fingers that had once cared for Yamuraiha when she was sick laid still. Her entire body sat cradled in her husband's arms as he sobbed. He looked up when he became suddenly aware of Yamuraiha's presence. He looked at her confused, as if he didn't recognize her at first. Then his face filled with rage.

"Drakon," she started weakly. "I'm so sorry." She tried to limp to his side.

"Don't come any closer witch!" He bellowed.

She stopped in her tracks, hurt welling up in her stomach. "I'm only trying to-"

"Get out of here! It's your fault that my wife is dead! It's your fault!" He screeched. "It's all because of you!"

Hurt welled up in her chest and tears stung in her eyes. The sky was tinged red from the fires, and it reflected out Drakon's opened eye. She tried to take a step closer.

"LEAVE!" He puffed up his chest in preparation to spew flames at her her. She dived behind a corner of a building mere seconds before she felt the rush of the flames envelop the other side of the building. Her ankle stung from the jolting movements. She knew Drakon would try to kill her if she tried to approach them again. She limped away from the area. She could hear Drakon's wails from several blocks away.

"My wife! My dear sweet wife!"

Yamuraiha felt the tears flying as she desperately tried to escape his cries. Her progress was slow going because of her ankle, and the cloths bandaging her hands were turning red from being soaked in blood. She didn't know what to do anymore. She felt utterly powerless against the devastation surrounding her. All the screaming around her were fading away, and that's what worried her most at the moment.

"Daddy! Daddy please get up!" She heard a child's voice cry desperately. She sucked in her breathe as she peered around a corner. She saw an enormous man wedged beneath the ruins of a church. She could see that there were children that were trapped underneath the rubble. She gasped and ran to the people when she recognized their blue hair and cat like eyes. It was Hinahoho and two of his kids!

It looked like that the father was using his body to create a gap between the fallen building and the ground so that the children could escape. Hinahoho appeared to be losing consciousness, and the gap still wasn't big enough for the kids to fit through. When Yamuraiha unsteadily reached them, she lifted with all her strength to help the Imuchakk lift the massive building off of the kids. Her muscles were burning and aching under the intensive weight. Their helpless cries ripped her heart into shreds.

"Don't," Hinahoho groaned not even looking at her.

Yamuraiha's teeth clenched and her muscles ached from the task, but the huge stone about to crush his children would not budge. "I want to help!" She hissed.

"You're not strong enough," he panted. "Find someone... who is."

She glared at him but felt herself limping away from them. He was right, she wasn't strong enough. She needed to Masrur or Sinbad. Someone or anyone that could help! Her weak legs carried her as fast as possible when she came around a bend that opened up into a clearing, and she almost screamed. She saw countless bodies lined up in rows that went on for what seemed like forever. What was strange was that they weren't bleeding or appeared to be hurt at all. Just hundreds of innocent people lying in the street unmoving. But that wasn't what had made her scream.

Ignoring the spikes of pain that shot up her leg, she ran to the nearest person. It was a child, about the age of eight she would say. He had short wavy black hair, and deeply tanned skin. But he had the exact same face of Aladdin, and that was what had haunted her. She picked him up and gently laid his head in the crook of her arm, prodding him so that he would wake up, except he wouldn't. He laid utterly still while cradled in her arms. His unseeing eyes stared up at the red sky.

The reality of it all hit Yamuraiha in full force. She began to cry with dry shaky screams. She needed to find someone to help Hinahoho, but she couldn't get her legs to move. She pushed her face into the boy's cold hair. Her tears was soaking his strands that smelled of smoke. Her sobs shook her entire body, and the ground began to swallow her up in a deep dark bottomless pit that-

"Hey, wake up!" Someone was shaking her shoulder. Her eyes burst open and she thrust her body forward. Her body was cold with sweat, and she was trembling. The storm had finally passed, unveiling a bright full moon that illuminated her bedroom. She could make out the silhouette of a man that was leaning over her. Her eyes focused on the moonlit figure leaning over her, and she beheld Sharrkan's face drawn taut. The moonlight gave him an almost ethereal appearance.

"You were crying in your sleep," he informed her pensively.

Yamuraiha burst into tears. She instantly felt the blood rush to her head in embarrassment. She wished that she could run into her bathroom and cry, but she was too rooted to the spot that she couldn't move. She covered her eyes with her hands, and she could feel Sharrkan's awkwardness drifting in the air thick like fog. She felt her bed give a little as he sat next to her. He began to pat her back in an attempt to comfort her. _Sharrkan _of all people had to find and try to comfort her in such a state to her mortification. Despite the embarrassment, she appreciated his presence and him trying to calm her down at the moment. How far she had fallen if she was finding solace in him? Almost too far. Almost. But she needed a shoulder to cry on, and he was the closest person to her at the moment.

"They're getting worse, aren't they?" It was more of a statement than a question, but his voice was soft as he spoke to Yamuraiha.

She tried to calm her sobs so that she could manage a reply. "What?" She blubbered, but she knew what he was talking about.

"Don't play dumb about your bad dreams."

She struggled to look at him through watery eyes. "How did you find out?" She had thought she had kept her nightmares secret from everyone. They weren't something she wanted to discuss with anyone. He ran a hand through his hair.

"You squirm a lot in your sleep when you have them, but I've never seen you scream before." He told her.

"Is that so?" She whimpered. She leaned her head against his shoulder and felt his body turn rigid under her touch. Then he forced his body to relax as he stiffly wrapped an arm around her. Their position was completely new to both of them. Neither of them had ever interacted with each other like this before. It wasn't such a bad change to Yamuraiha.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Sharrkan asked her, but she could not read the expression on his face.

Her cries were finally beginning to subside after a good ten minutes had passed. She contemplated his offer. She hadn't shared her nightmares with anyone because they were so realistic. Maybe if she finally confided in someone the dreams would get better. She took a deep breath, and then spilled the beans to him. She didn't hide any detail from him; the sights, the smells, the sounds, everything. She told him everything and he listened to everything she had to say while he sat by her side quietly. When she got to the stories of Drakon, Hinahoho, and Aladdin, she couldn't hold the tears back. His robes were becoming moist from her weeping, but he didn't seem to mind. When she was finished, his piercing gaze was studying her while he carefully process everything she had revealed to him. It was uncomfortable for him to be staring at her like this, and she shifted uncomfortably.

"Can I ask you something?" Sharrkan asked her hesitantly.

"Okay, I guess." Yamuraiha felt apprehensive about this whole situation, not sure if saying anything to him had been the correct decision after all.

"Sinbad said the first thing you said when he found you was: 'I'm sorry.'"

She looked away. Of course they had to talk about _that._

He continued on. "Everyone just assumed you apologized because you didn't want to put him in distress… But that isn't the reason, is it?" He finished delicately.

"What does that have to do with anything?" She dodgily shot back at him. She leaned away from him and pushed his arm off of her, still refusing to look at the man. "Just forget that I said anything. You should probably go now," she snarled.

He crossed his arms and stubbornly puffed out his chest. "No, it's still my shift idiot. I'm not leaving," he huffed. "Will you at least look me in the eyes?" He challenged.

Two can play this game and Yamuraiha was just as headstrong, if not more, than Sharrkan. She dared to meet his challenging gaze with an icy blue glare of her own. The two of them just glared daggers at each other, but for a different reason than what was normal.

"Don't push me away just yet," he urged. "Not when I'm finally starting to understand you."

"You of _all_ people couldn't possibly understand me, nor I you. It's just who we are," she reminded him warily.

He rolled his eyes. "At least _I'm_ the one trying," he goaded.

She let out an exasperated sigh. He was right she supposed, but hadn't she told him to stop? She studied the arrogant man's face. He looked downright annoyed as much as she felt. Then she suddenly remembered something and and she smirked at him earning another glare.

"Alright, fine. Then you tell me something: What happened earlier today when you were training in the courtyard?" Her body felt warm with triumph when he blinked at her looking quite taken aback.

"What're you talking about?" Sharrkan shirked.

Yamuraiha gave him a withering look. "Do you see what I'm saying?"

He growled in frustration and he shook his head. "But it's all making sense now," he still stubbornly pushed on. "You told Sinbad that you wouldn't take down the barrier until you weren't able to anymore. You said that it was your duty as a magician. You built that stupid barrier even though Sin never asked you to. But your nightmares and the way you apologized to him… I can tell that being magician almost has nothing to do with it."

Her spine prickled at his words and she held her breath. Just how much more observant can this guy get?

"You're dreams are just a manifestation of your deepest fear. You're afraid that you're not strong enough to protect _the entire country_… And you're afraid that because you're too weak, you can't protect those you hold dear," He concluded. Her sullen look confirmed his presumption.

She looked out her window that overlooked the glowing lights of the city. Her eyes began to water at the truth in his statement. Was she really that easy to read? How many others saw into her like that? She sighed heavily.

"I guess the thought that scares me the most… Is that I wasn't strong enough to protect any of you."

Sharrkan was silent before saying, "Then that's something that we actually have in common." She looked at him, and then he instinctively wiped at her tears. She hadn't even realized that they were there, and she fought the urge to push him away. She would let him in, just this once.

"It's hard isn't it? To watch someone get hurt, and there isn't anything you can do to help them. You have to watch them fight a battle you know they can't win, and you have to watch them while being completely powerless. Knowing that you can't fight for them kills them almost just as much as the other person."

His words left her speechless, and she sensed that he was trying to tell her something. And suddenly she understood his words when the images of him throwing his sword away like trash and when he looked up at the sky in defeat came to her mind. Just the thought that _she was the one who_ put him through that was enough to send her head spinning. Had he always been this caring? She felt lightheaded as he continuously wiped at her tears. His face was full of some emotion that she couldn't name, but then his expression turned serious. He gripped her shoulders making her jump a little.

"But let me tell me tell you something," he murmured to her in a low voice. She gulped and nodded. "You did not fail, because You. Are. Not. Weak."

The sincerity of his words left Yamuraiha stunned, but she couldn't help but feel skeptical. She studied his face again. His green eyes were bright, and his copper skin gleamed in the moonlight. She found herself admiring the features of his face again. His eyes were quite enjoyable to look at when he wasn't glaring at her. She wondered how his skin was relatively flawless even though he was a swordsman, and then she recalled something.

"Sharrkan, this may sound weird but… Can you turn around?"

He looked at her in confusion. "Why?"

"Please just do it," she begged and squeezed her eyes shut in embarrassment at what was coming next.

He perked an eyebrow warily as he let go of her shoulders and slowly scooted around so that he was facing the wall away from her.

"And one more thing…"

"I'm scared to even ask," he chuckled nervously.

"Could you, um… Take your tunic off? I'm mean just the top of course!" She was blushing madly by now, grateful that he couldn't see her face. Now he seemed to understand what she was getting at. He didn't say a word as he gingerly slipped his outer robes off first, leaving his Heliohaptian clothes still on him. He fumbled around with that too until he managed to slip that down as well. The garb pooled around his hips leaving his back bare, revealing a thick and ugly scar that stretched from his right shoulder blade all the way down to his left hip.

Yamuraiha recalled the day with perfect clarity. How could she forget? That was the day when Judar penetrated her protective barrier, setting off this entire mess she was in. She remembered the valiant way she and the others fought to protect their country. Sharrkan received an exceptional nasty injury that day, which resulted in the scar she was staring at now. Even though it had healed since then, it still looked bright pink and tender. She had never looked at it this closely before. She softly placed her dainty fingers on the scar, and she felt the muscles in his back stiffen. It still must be sensitive to touch even though he earned it ages ago.

"Did it hurt?" She asked him.

"When I fell from heaven? Not really," he joked.

She rolled her eyes at him even though he couldn't see her. "No, dummy. When you got this scar?"

Sharrkan was silent before he said anything to her. "Yeah, it hurt pretty bad." He grunted.

Yamuraiha felt momentarily impressed with herself that she managed to get someone as prideful as him to confess that he had been in pain. Then she immediately felt guilt swamp her.

"You got this scar because of me," she whispered.

"What are you talking about? That stupid guy with the stupid sword gave it to me. What was his name? Byoln, or something like that I think."

She shook her head and let her hand drift down to her side. "But if I had been able to hold the barrier up-" she choked. "If I had been strong enough-"

"Because you _were_ strong enough, nobody here died and this scar was the worst thing that happened to me. Forget about that stupid barrier. It was your own stupid talent that saved us all." He asserted to her.

Yamuraiha couldn't believe that she was receiving such high praise from _Sharrkan_. Even though he still managed to throw an insult in, she could tell that he meant every word he said.

The only thing she thought to say was, "You know, I'll never forgive you if you die in a sword fight."

"Really? You're bringing that up now? And you're one to talk. I will never forgive you if you die from magic."

"Well, we're both screwed in that case."

"Then I guess we'll be screwups together," he chuckled. He began to pull his clothing back up on his shoulders. Suddenly, Yamuraiha felt a sensation that she hadn't felt in a very long time.

"Is that watermelon still around?" She asked him.

He stopped what he was doing and turned around to give her an incredulous look. "Don't tell me that you're actually hungry?" His mouth was gaping open, and his chest was still bare even though his navel was adequately covered. She blushed despite herself.

"What? Anytime is a great time for watermelon."

"Even at four in the morning," he chuckled in agreement. He pulled the rest of his robes back on. He leaned down and reached under her bed and to her surprise, he rolled out the watermelon he brought from a couple nights ago.

"You kept that in here?" She asked him quizzically.

He shrugged. "I kept it in here in case of an emergency."

She giggled. "An emergency watermelon? What kind of an emergency?"

"An, 'in case Sharr needs a midnight snack' kind of emergency," he chuckled as he stood up and tossed the melon in the air. With a flash he used his black sword to divide the fruit in half and sheath it before catching the halves in his arms.

"Do you have to pull that thing out in _my_ _room_?" She huffed, though she was rather impressed with his skills. She would never tell him that of course. She didn't want to feed more hot air into a head that was already too big.

"But using a regular knife wouldn't be any fun." Sharrkan smirked at Yamuraiha while handing her one of the halves of the melon. She took it and was surprised when he handed her a spoon.

"Where did you get this?" She stared with wide eyes as he pulled another spoon out of his robes.

"I always come prepared."

"You are always full of surprises, Sharrkan." She smiled and shook her head.

"Of course! It's more interesting that way." He sat back down next to her. The two dug into their melons with their spoons, chatting about nothing in particular. Occasionally they would throw half-hearted insults at each other to maintain their rivalry. They had both found it increasingly harder to stay angry with each other for very long. Suddenly they heard the door squeak open. They craned their necks to see who was crazy enough to visit them at this hour.

Sinbad waltzed through the door grinning ear to ear. Masrur and Spartos followed after him looking just as pleased. They stopped and stared at Yamuraiha holding an almost finished watermelon.

"You're finally eating again?" Sinbad asked her in pleasant surprise. She nodded, and she noticed out of the corner of her eye Sharrkan discreetly giving them a thumbs up.

"Where have you all been and what are you doing here this early in the morning?" She asked suspiciously.

"I just got back, and I couldn't wait to tell you-"

"Back from where? Couldn't wait to tell me what?" His excitement filled the room and she could tell he could hardly contain himself.

"I just returned from a meeting with Magnostadt officials," he announced with a twinkle in his eye.

Yamuraiha and Sharrkan gaped at him. "_What_?" She asked him in bewilderment. Just what was their king up to?

Sinbad laughed. "I couldn't wait to tell you at a more decent, so I came straight here to inform you regardless if you were awake or not. Yamuraiha, you better start packing; You're going to Magnostadt."


End file.
